Inspiring Beauty: 50 Years of Ebony Fashion Fair

                “Fashionista” is not a word that would be used to describe me.  I never feel I have to own the next trend, nor do I pay much attention to what is on the runway.  That does not mean I am completely oblivious to fashion.  There are items that catch my eye and I am always at least curious to see what designers are creating.  Usually I find out because of an ad or an awards show, but often I do because of movies too.  Old movies, that is.  I have found that I am most fascinated by clothes of the past.  They have clean lines and great craftsmanship.  That is not something that can always be said of today.  All the time I see fabric patterns that don’t line up and clothes that are not sewn together properly.  Also there are garments that make me wonder how anyone can wear them.  Some I’m not even sure how they are put on.  When I see these, I often wonder about the clothes I see in old movies and hope that one day they will come back into style.

                Now, some may hear the words “clean lines” and “great craftsmanship” and immediately think boring.  That is not the truth at all and the art exhibit Inspiring Beauty: 50 Years of Ebony Fashion Fair proves it.  Currently at the Milwaukee Art Museum, the exhibit displays garments that were used at Ebony’s fashion events throughout the years.  Most of the clothes are women’s, but there are some men’s in there too, and they are all gorgeous.  Everything is very well crafted and it is obvious that every detail was made with great precision and with a purpose.  Nothing looks random, not even the placement of feathers.

                Along with the actual fashions, there are different short films visitors can watch and listen to with a pair of provided headphones.  These are quite popular and it might take a moment to get your turn with the headphones, but the images on the screen are interesting all on their own.  Even if you don’t feel like sitting for the whole film, it is definitely worth stopping for a moment to see what is happening on screen. 

              According to the brochure I received from the Milwaukee Art Museum, the Inspiring Beauty exhibit will be here until the very beginning of May 2015. When I did a search for the exhibit, I found it will be moving to other cities after leaving Milwaukee. If it happens to be coming to an area near you, I highly recommend you see the exhibit. At the very least, especially if the exhibit is not coming to your area, look it up online. These garments are such works of art and definitely worth seeing even if you’re not that big into fashion. It is a great lesson in what fashion used to be and what it could become again.